The Boggart Under the Bed
by Kat Morning
Summary: Even perfect worlds have a few boggarts to deal with. A tiein with The Heir of Merlin but no spoilers.


I want to thank Gwendolyn Grace for giving me the idea for using the name Cygnus from her story "His Majesty's Secret Service".  Wonderful story, and it's a great name. 

This is pure and total fluff.  No real plot involved and very short.  If you want plot read "The Heir of Merlin".  This is the same world/timeline as "Heir" but about ten years later.  Cygnus Black is Sirius Black's son.  James Potter is Harry's.

As always, please leave a review.

**The Boggart under the Bed**

Two small boys raced through the doors of the master bedroom, skidding to a halt just inside.  Carefully avoiding the shadows haunting the bed and closet, the pair crept silently into the moonlit room.  The smaller of the two whispered quietly to his companion, pointing to the sleeping occupants of the large bed.  The other nodded and they crept closer.

"Dad!"  The smaller one poked at the larger form in the bed while his companion watched the shadows tensely.  Harry Potter rolled over and opened his eyes to find a pair of dark brown ones staring right back.

"James?  Cygnus?"  Harry asked sleepily identifying the dark-haired forms of his son and godson beside him.  "What are you two doing out of bed?"

"There's a monster under the bed, Dad!  Where's your wand?"  James asked frantically.  Harry snapped awake at the terror in his son's eyes and voice and sat up.  Dimly he felt Ginny stir beside him and knew she was listening.  A glance at the nearby dark-detectors relaxed him some.  They didn't register any threats.  On the other hand, Harry had a pair of frightened boys on his hands.

"James.  You can't use a wand yet.  Now what's under your bed?"

"A huge troll!"  James cried just as Cygnus reported a Lethifold.

"It was a troll!"  James protested, glaring with annoyance at his friend.

"Lethifold!"  Cygnus shot back.  "You didn't have your glasses on yet!"

"I can still tell the difference, Cygnus!"  James shouted back, 

Harry sighed in defeat and started groping for his glasses, ignoring the amused giggles coming from his wife.  Somehow he doubted either a troll or a lethifold lurked beneath their bed but to a pair of small boys even a discarded cloak or a sock-strewn toy looked menacing in the dark.  Harry grabbed his wand from under his pillow and followed the six and seven-year-old out the door to do battle with the shadows.

*

Moonlight threw swaying tree-shadows across the doors as Harry, Cygnus and James arrived at the boy's bedroom.  The boys hesitated, clearly unwilling to go inside, but peeking carefully into the room as Harry stepped inside.

James and Cygnus squeaked and disappeared from sight as Harry stepped on a protesting floorboard.

Harry lifted the bed skirt and stumbled back as a forbidding cold filled the room.  A dementor glided from the bed, it's tall narrow form brushing the ceiling, stretching its grisly, rotting, scabbed hand toward Harry, its horrible death rattle shivering through the room.

"_Expecto Patronum_!"  Harry yelled, summoning the silver stag from his wand to drive the creature back.  The dementor fell back, stumbled on its robe and crashed into the Quidditch picture on the wall.  Harry blinked.  Dementors didn't stumble!  "A boggart!  _Riddikulus_!"

With a loud crack the shape-shifter exploded in a wisp of smoke.  The silvery stag turned back, bowed to Harry, then faded from sight.  Harry pocketed his wand and looked back over his shoulder as he heard the bedroom door whisper open.  Two small faces, frightened eyes wide, peaked cautiously around the door at him.  "Is it gone?"  Cygnus asked timidly, stepping into the room with James at his side.

Harry nodded and pulled them both close.  "All safe."

*

A feather light touch trailing across his face roused Harry to early morning sunlight and the amused laughter of his wife.

"Defeated the evil lethifold and troll all right?"  Ginny raised an eyebrow grinning at him and playfully dangling his glasses from her index finger while holding her dressing gown closed with her other hand.  Harry blinked up at her, wondering for a moment what he was doing on the floor.

"Boggart."  Harry explained, listening to the chimes of the hall clock chime seven.  He'd tucked the boys back into James' large bed and intended to watch over them until they fell asleep again.  Obviously he'd fallen asleep during his vigil and someone, one of the boys, most likely, had tucked a blanket around his shoulders sometime during the night.

Ginny helped pull him to his feet, kissing him sweetly when he came close enough.  Then she giggled and pointed wordlessly behind him.  Harry turned, wrapping his arms protectively around her shoulders and smiled.  The two boys curled close together amidst a small nest of fluffy pillows, sharing a quilt and sleeping soundly.

"All safe."  Harry whispered gently kissing Ginny's hair.  She sighed and leaned back against him in contentment.

"All safe."  She agreed.

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Review?

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Disclaimer:  If you recognize it, it's not mine and belongs to J.K. Rowling.


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